SHOPS saw a continued drop in footfall last month.
A survey by retail performance company Springboard found that overall footfall in Northern Ireland dropped by 3 per cent in August - a decrease on July's 5 per cent drop.
Shopping centres were hardest-hit, with footfall down by 4.2 per cent last month - the steepest rate of decline since July 2018.
However, the picture was better on the high street, with footfall down by 2.6 per cent - the shallowest decline since April.
Experts have said shopping footfall has declined every year since 2014.
Aodhán Connolly, director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium, said the figures were "disappointing, yet not surprising".
"The spectre of a no-deal Brexit looms ever larger as we head towards October 31 and even though we have gained £400 million from the Chancellor's Spending Round, it will not fix the fundamental problems in Northern Ireland," he said.
"We need ministers at the helm to make the bold decisions to support the needs of both households and businesses.
"Households are already feeling the financial strain due to recent rises in domestic rates and minimum pension contributions. Intense competition amongst retailers is helping to keep prices on the shelves down, but this will not be sustainable if there are tariffs, checks, delays and costs due to a no-deal Brexit.
"Households here need the certainty of a deal to protect consumers, and the Stormont Executive up and running, to make Northern Ireland a better place to live, work and invest."
Diane Wehrle, marketing and insights director with Springboard, said declining footfall is a long-term trend.
"The decrease in footfall was a clear deterioration in performance from the rise of +0.5 per cent in August last year, however, it was still the strongest footfall over the summer months," she said.
She added that in Britain "footfall strengthened noticeably in the final week when the hottest August bank holiday on record improved footfall as consumers looked to make the most of the good weather".
"In Northern Ireland footfall worsened in the final week; in the high street it shifted from a rise of +2.6 per cent in week three to a drop of -2 per cent in the fourth week, and in shopping centres from -6.2 per cent in the third week to -6.7 per cent in the fourth."
